Worried

[Chelsea Miles]

My cat was diagnosed with diabetes in April. He will be 15 in July, we started insulin once a day (2units) but it wasn't helping enough. So we started doing 2 units in the morning and 1 unit at night and that still wasn't enough. So we started 2 units in the morning and 2 units at night. He looks like he's losing more weight, looks like he's walking different (noticed walking tonight) and still drinking and peeing a lot outside the liter box. Should I be more worried than I have been already or is this something that takes more time to get regulated. When we found out he had diabetes his glucose level was 455. I just want my baby to feel better

 

[BJM]

We need some context for giving you good feedback.
What insulin are you using?
Are the doses 12 hours apart?
What are you feeding, how much, and how often?
When are you testing the glucose?
Are you using a human or pet meter? From your earlier post, it looks like you may be using a pet meter, possibly the Alpha Trak 2, you got through your vet (?)

The difficulty standing and walking could be peripheral neuropathy, or low potassium. Blood work at the vet will determine if the potassium level is OK; do not give potassium without the vet saying it is needed (too much OR too little can cause severe problems) Peripheral neuropathy often resolves with good blood glucose control and a specific form of Vitamin B12 - methylcobalamin. Zobaline is one product which may help (available online), or you might check VitaCost (also online) for their methylcobalamin supplement. Be sure there are no sweeteners in any supplement (sorbitol, xylitol, etc.)

 

[Chelsea Miles]

His insulin is called ProZinc, he gets them at 7am and 7pm. He is eating Purina ProPlan Vetrinary Diets DM (Dietetic Management) he's suppose to have 1/3 cup of the food which is hard to adjust him to because he's always had his dish available to him all the time. I haven't checked his glucose because we've been back and forth to the vets so often they've been checking it. I dropped a urine sample off as well a few weeks ago and it showed high sugars still so that's when we upped his insulin to twice a day 2 units each time.

 

[BJM]

It will be much safer for your cat if you test his blood at home. You will know if it is safe to give the ProZinc and if the dose is taking him appropriately low, while remaining safely above 50 mg/dL on a human meter (68 mg/dL on a pet meter).
All you need is an inexpensive human meter such as the Arkray Glucocard 01 or Glucocard 01 Mini (branded as the Walmart ReliOn Confirm and Confirm Micro), matching test strips, and lancets for alternate site testing (26-28 gauge). We can coach you through the testing process.

While you work on the blood glucose testing, take a look at my signature link Secondary Monitoring Tools for some assessments you can use to evaluate how he is doing. If he is walking down on his hocks, I'm going to guess that he may be spending a lot of time in excessively high numbers.

Over time, the body will break down fat for energy when there isn't enough insulin to use the carbohydrates. Ketones are formed as a byproduct of this. The fat may overwhelm the liver, causing hepatic lipidosis, and the ketones may devolve into diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). Both are severe, expensive to treat, complications of diabetes and if severe, may result in death.